2011 Labor Day Entertainment Guide

A single tear is slowly falling down my cheek as I type, and internally force myself to acknowledge, that summer is coming to a close. Considered the official end of the season, Labor Day weekend is just around the corner, bringing with it a wild lineup of pool parties, music festivals, celebrity appearances, and urban artistic expression. Labor Day means the gradual fall into autumn has begun, but we San Diegans won’t say goodbye to our favorite of seasons without a bang.

Our top picks for 2011 Labor Day weekend in San Diego include the Identity Music Festival at Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre, featuring Kaskade, Afrojack, and Pretty Lights, Fortune’s Labor Day Pool Party at Ivy Rooftop, the Wet Pool Party at W Hotel, and dual double-headers with Pauly D and Martin Solveig at Intervention, and Avicii and Mark Knight at Wavehouse. If you need a break from the club scene, enjoy a free concert from Ben Harper at the Del Mar Racetrack, soak up some culture during the East Village Random Acts of Art event, or upgrade your day-life and join The Local for Sing, Dance, Crawl 2.0 in the Gaslamp Quarter.

As the old saying goes, there’s no better way to kick off a holiday weekend than with an old fashioned mankini fashion show contest and champagne spray-down party. We here at DiscoverSD.com are inviting you to get weird with us on Tuesday, August 30 as we host the No Pants Dance at Voyeur, featuring DJ sets by Mr. White and Brady Spears, as well as super-cheap champagne bottle specials, to encourage excessive spraying, of course. San Diego’s bravest industry babes will walk the runway, rocking their finest mankinis as styled by Diesel Salon and iTAN Solariums, and lucky guests in the crowd will judge who is the hottest of all, while spraying them, and themselves, with ridiculous amounts of champagne. Yep, we’re actually serious. Guest list gets you no cover and hosted cocktails 9-10pm. RSVP now!

The Identity Festival is taking over Cricket on September 2 with LED Presents, introducing this iconic outdoor venue to an entirely new concert experience. Similar to old Street Scene days, the Cricket campus will be divided into multiple stages, featuring over 20 performances in rotation from 1pm to 11:30pm. Identity will showcase Kaskade, Afrojack, Pretty Lights, Steve Aoki, Nero, The Crystal Method, LA Riots and many more.

LED Presents is invading Wavehouse this Labor Day weekend, featuring back-to-back parties on Saturday and Sunday, from day to night. Get the party started on Saturday, September 3 with Avicii, a Swedish DJ, remixer, and record producer also known as Tim Berg, is known best for his single “Bromance” which charted in the top 20 on the national single charts of Belgium, the Netherlands, and his native Sweden. More hot Avicii tracks include “My Feelings for You,” with Sebastien Drums, “Street Dancer,” and “Tweet It,” among others. Don’t miss Avicii spinning live at Wavehouse, with opening sets from Brady Spear, Tara Brooks, Victor Dinaire, and Jay Idol.

Release SF and HomeMade are taking over the W San Diego Hotel during Labor Day weekend to host the Wet Pool Party, all day and all night, on Saturday, September 3. The Wet Pool Party features headliner DJ and producer Mark Farina, as well as beats by Franky Boissy, Halo, Cris Herrera, Paul Najera, Jason Tokita, Jon Dadon, Drummer John and more. Get the party started at 1pm, and don’t stop ‘til 2am.

The Hard Rock Hotel San Diego is celebrating Labor Day in a big way, with a double-header of Intervention madness on Saturday and Sunday, from morning ‘til night. Start the weekend off right by partying with Pauly D as he spins live at Intervention on Saturday, September 3. You know him for his dark tan, big muscles, and slick back hair, but this “Jersey Shore” stud is also an emerging star in the DJ industry.

Regular bar crawls are so 2010. Thankfully, The Local’s signature Sing, Dance, Crawl event is back again for Labor Day weekend, taking your daytime drinking to an entirely new level with loads of interactive entertainment at multiple venues across town. On Saturday, September 3, head to The Local at 10am for breakfast and drink specials, before dancing and crawling your way to House of Blues, FLUXX, Stingaree, and Bootlegger ‘til 7pm. And of course, we’re hooking you up with more party perks. Enter promo code DiscoverSD when buying your ticket to be entered to win a $60 Gift Card to The Local to be used on food and drinks!